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- Eternal Rest: Britten’s War Requiem and Sargent’s Gassed
Endless latin church chants of “eternal rest.” One note soft, repeated, staccato. Another note soft, repeated, staccato. Again and again and again as if that’s all that mattered. Twelve gassed soldiers move slowly, stumbling from left to right. They lightly touch or hold on to each other, the blind leading the blind but not one… Read more: Eternal Rest: Britten’s War Requiem and Sargent’s Gassed - Two Mystic Visions: Botticelli’s Mystic Nativity and Handel’s Messiah
Botticelli’s twelve angels hold hands in a mystic circle of dance. Handel’s sopranos climb music’s ladder step by step towards the heavens.* Three angels, three men, embrace on earth. Every voice breaks out in a dancing, leaping phrase–“And he shall reign forever”—treated polyphonically while punctuated with energetic, triumphant Hallelujahs. Mary and Jesus painted larger than… Read more: Two Mystic Visions: Botticelli’s Mystic Nativity and Handel’s Messiah - Dvorak’s Largo (New World Symphony) and Tanner’s The Banjo Lesson
1893. Tanner’s The Banjo Lesson a challenge to white caricatures of blacks playing the banjo as happy, lazy, drunk, untutored . . . Dvorak’s New World Symphony a challenge to all would-be American composers: the future music of this country must be founded upon what are called the negro melodies. Dvorak opens his Largo with… Read more: Dvorak’s Largo (New World Symphony) and Tanner’s The Banjo Lesson - Vermeer’s “The Guitar Player” and the music of Gaspar Sanz
Vermeer’s sacred light travels across the room to illuminate her forehead, her fingers. She looks off to her left where someone listens offstage. Not the ancient lute, but a guitar from Spain. More chic, more modern. Easier to play, too. Catchy melodies, simple accompaniments. I imagine she plays music from Sanz’s Instrucción de música sobre la… Read more: Vermeer’s “The Guitar Player” and the music of Gaspar Sanz - Debussy’s “Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun” and Klimt’s “The Maiden”
Each of Debussy’s notes a delicacy, a dream. Each of Klimt’s flowers, faces a desire to be touched. Spiral after spiral on the maiden’s dress spinning round and down into the deepest part of ourselves. Desire? Fertility? Cosmos? Earth? Debussy begins with a low breathy flute. Pan’s seductive instrument rises and falls, directionless. Angelic harp… Read more: Debussy’s “Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun” and Klimt’s “The Maiden” - An Androgynous Couple: Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring and Matisse’s Joy of Life
On our third date, my wife and I saw the Rite of Spring. Victorian sexuality freed. The piano’s legs uncovered, its heart grabbed hard. Stravinsky invents chords at the piano, a shot of vodka in hand. Experiments, inventions, of rhythm. Russian folk songs, violence. I wanted to move in 4/4 time, but Stravinsky invents a… Read more: An Androgynous Couple: Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring and Matisse’s Joy of Life - Ethel Smyth’s “March of the Women,” Art by Margaret Morris
Two women lead the way. One with the tricolored flag—white, purple, and green– of the women’s movement. The other with a baby in her arms. Behind them a long line of women who had never cast a vote. If you can’t cast a vote, cast a rock through a parliament member’s window. That’s why Ethel… Read more: Ethel Smyth’s “March of the Women,” Art by Margaret Morris - Journeys: Beethoven’s Pathétique and Caspar David Friedrich’s “The Wanderer”
A solitary figure looks out over mountaintops, mystery, creation. Caspar David Friedrich’s The Wanderer. The wanderer is us. Wisps of fog everywhere at the beginning or middle or end of a journey. Beethoven’s introduction marked Grave. A big bang dissonant chord grabs us by the arm or scruff of the neck. It is followed immediately… Read more: Journeys: Beethoven’s Pathétique and Caspar David Friedrich’s “The Wanderer” - Hildegard von Bingen’s Music, Illumination from her Book, Scivias
Five tongues of flame descend upon her. “Warming, not burning,” as she says in one of her many visions. She dictates this vision to her teacher, Volmar. The gold background the background of eternity. God’s paradise always reoccurring, available. Music the richest part of paradise. It floats high above us, yet penetrates most deeply. Hildegard… Read more: Hildegard von Bingen’s Music, Illumination from her Book, Scivias - Tennis Players as Works of Art Named One of Eight Outstanding Books of the Year
Hi everyone, Happy to announce that Tennis Players as Works of Art was chosen as one of eight Outstanding Books of the Year for the 29th annual IPPY Awards. IPPY is short for Independent Publisher’s Book Awards. Tennis Players as Works of Art won the award for its Original Concept. Last year there were over… Read more: Tennis Players as Works of Art Named One of Eight Outstanding Books of the Year - Rimsky-Korsakov’s Scheherazade, Art by Ferdinand Keller
The Sultan Shahriar, convinced of the duplicity and infidelity of all women, vowed to slay each of his wives after the first night. The Sultana Scheherazade, however, saved her life by the expedient of recounting to the Sultan a succession of tales over a period of one thousand one nights. Overcome by curiosity, the monarch… Read more: Rimsky-Korsakov’s Scheherazade, Art by Ferdinand Keller - Berlioz’s Symphonie Fantastique, Final Movement, and Frans Franken’s “The Witches Sabbath”
Repeat three times a six note rush upwards from the depths of hell in the cellos and basses. Repeat three times church bells descending on octave. Repeat three times the “Dies Irae” (Day of Wrath) sacred chant. First time played by the sacrilegious tubas in slower, steady notes. Third time outrageously fast in the dancing,… Read more: Berlioz’s Symphonie Fantastique, Final Movement, and Frans Franken’s “The Witches Sabbath” - Barbara Strozzi’s “Lagrime Mie” (My Tears), Portrait by Bernardo Strozzi (no relation)
Being a woman, I am concerned about publishing this work. Would that it lie safely under a golden oak tree and not be endangered by swords of slander which have already been drawn to battle against it. (Barbara Strozzi’s preface to her first book of madrigals) The painter’s idea for one exposed breast a rumor… Read more: Barbara Strozzi’s “Lagrime Mie” (My Tears), Portrait by Bernardo Strozzi (no relation) - Bach’s Crucifixus and Grunewald’s Crucifixion
A chromatic descending bass line. Repeated heavy, plodding steps. Continuous sighs as if carrying the cross or carrying the weight of death. The word Crucifixus repeated 12 times by individual voices. Each entrance dissonant, anguished, deliberate, reluctant, reverential. Three repeated notes, then a few notes descending towards earth. A few rising triads of extraordinary pain.… Read more: Bach’s Crucifixus and Grunewald’s Crucifixion - Arnold Schoenberg, A Survivor from Warsaw, Art by Preciada Avancot
Narrator, men’s chorus, orchestra. A fanfare in the trumpets calls us to attention. The narrator’s life-in-death-in-life text set to Schoenberg’s dissonant music. Two later trumpet fanfares call the prisoners to attention each day. At random (it seems) we hear chaotic drum fills, sudden outbursts, plucked and struck strings, rapid repeated notes like verbal jabs. No… Read more: Arnold Schoenberg, A Survivor from Warsaw, Art by Preciada Avancot - Sibelius’s Second Symphony and Gallen-Kallela’s Lake View
Sibelius takes long walks in the forest mist. Gallen-Kallela paints a realistic yet mythic Finnish landscape. Miniature trees in the foreground suggest Finland’s forests to come. Brushstrokes like breath or delicate oars cause the lake’s many ripples. In Sibelius’s strings a brooding three note pattern of rising notes, each one louder. They are someone’s footsteps,… Read more: Sibelius’s Second Symphony and Gallen-Kallela’s Lake View - Josquin’s Ave Maria and Raphael’s Madonna of the Goldfinch
Josquin’s opening leap of a fourth in the highest voice. We are suddenly looking up. Ave Maria (Hail to Mary). Raphael paints her so beautifully she must be divine. Beauty equals God in the Renaissance. That’s how they interpreted Plato. That’s how they interpreted this world, too. Raphael’s flowers, trees, and distant mountains an exquisitely… Read more: Josquin’s Ave Maria and Raphael’s Madonna of the Goldfinch - John Dowland’s Lute and Holbein’s The Ambassadors
In Holbein’s painting a brilliantly foreshortened lute. One string is broken, hinting at the discord between Catholic and Protestant faiths. Five million would die in those wars. A generation later, the Catholic John Dowland, the most famous lutenist in history, could not get a job in Queen Elizabeth’s court. When I was a young man… Read more: John Dowland’s Lute and Holbein’s The Ambassadors - Rodrigo’s Concierto de Aranjuez (Adagio) and Picasso’s Guernica
Music as fragile as a butterfly and as precise as a matador’s pass. A minor chord, or a chord spiced with dissonance, on a strummed guitar. An English horn weaves what Rodrigo wept in his piano night of lost children.* (Again and again his wife, Victoria, reports.) A solo guitar takes over the lament, adds… Read more: Rodrigo’s Concierto de Aranjuez (Adagio) and Picasso’s Guernica - Interview with Atmosphere Press
Please find below a recent interview I did with Atmosphere Press about Tennis Players as Works of Art. How did it feel when you first saw your book cover? Or when you first held your book in your hands? The book cover was beautiful. It consisted of eleven different artworks from eleven of the forty-five… Read more: Interview with Atmosphere Press - Erik Satie, Gymnopedies and Gnossiennes, Art by Preciada Azancot
“A great owl watches from his tower in the red night. Two notes in golden irises dance like two pears. He takes an umbrella and puts on his hat. Then he closes his tower and dances in silence.”–Preciada Azancot Music as anti-revolution revolution. Music going nowhere, Lent et doloreux. A Gymnopedie or Gnossienne does not… Read more: Erik Satie, Gymnopedies and Gnossiennes, Art by Preciada Azancot - Claudio Monteverdi, Art by Bernardo Strozzi
Galileo turns his telescope outwards towards the heavens. Monteverdi turns his microscope inwards towards emotions. The background dark, the coat even darker, in Strozzi’s portrait. Monterverdi’s eyes probing, intense. His left hand rests on one of his innovative scores, his right hand touching its notes as if to explore his new world of sounds. Forget… Read more: Claudio Monteverdi, Art by Bernardo Strozzi - Holst’s The Planets and Rubens’ The Consequences of War
Mars: Holst wrote Mars on the eve of WWI. Venus grabs Mars’ arm in Rubens’ painting, but she cannot hold him back. The muscular legs of Mars move forward as relentlessly as the 5/4 ostinato pattern in Holst’s Mars. All the strings in the orchestra march as one, striking their string with the wooden side… Read more: Holst’s The Planets and Rubens’ The Consequences of War - Beethoven’s Funeral March, Third Symphony, and Goya’s Third of May
Beethoven’s funeral march plays as we stare into the eyes of Goya’s Third of May. A slow march in a minor key. A dotted rhythm to push as along as we grieve. The oboe and its sighs seem a solitary individual in the gathered crowd. Contrasts of light and dark, the church a shadow in… Read more: Beethoven’s Funeral March, Third Symphony, and Goya’s Third of May - Tennis Players as Works of Art one of the “Best Books We Read in 2024” (IBR)
Just wanted to announce that Independent Book Review named Tennis Players as Works of Art as one of the “Best Books We Read in 2024.” It was the only sports book on the list. Here is the review: Like a museum exhibit in a book—an impressive collection of art and prose celebrating tennis. It took seven years… Read more: Tennis Players as Works of Art one of the “Best Books We Read in 2024” (IBR) - Monica Seles, Art by Miki de Goodaboom
Check out my latest book, Tennis Players as Works of Art, now available on Amazon. Called “madly ambitious” and named one its 5 featured books of 2024 in the category of Art/Imagination/Creativity by Publisher’s Weekly Booklife, Tennis Players as Works of Art has also been named “One of the Best Books we Read in 2024”… Read more: Monica Seles, Art by Miki de Goodaboom - Tennis Players as Works of Art Book SigningJust wanted to announce an upcoming book reading and signing in Fayetteville, AR for Tennis Players as Works of Art, which will be released on Dec. 3. This book includes the work of 45 artists and will be housed in the collections of the Wimbledon Museum library and in the Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery. Please… Read more: Tennis Players as Works of Art Book Signing
- The French Open Poster 2024, Art by Paul Rousteau
Check out my latest book, Tennis Players as Works of Art, now available on Amazon. Called “madly ambitious” and named one its 5 featured books of 2024 in the category of Art/Imagination/Creativity by Publisher’s Weekly Booklife, Tennis Players as Works of Art has also been named “One of the Best Books we Read in 2024”… Read more: The French Open Poster 2024, Art by Paul Rousteau - Remembrance Flags at the Bocage Tournament
I saw these moving Remembrance Flags at the Bocage tournament in Baton Rouge last week. Keith Richardson, one of the top national players in the 70 and over division, puts these flags up at each tournament he plays. He explains their meaning below: Below are a few more pics of the many flags that were… Read more: Remembrance Flags at the Bocage Tournament - Tennis Trails and Tennis Fashion Icons, Art by Apeksha
Note on “Tennis Trails” (from Apeksha’s website): My collection of 6 AI-generated images of tennis courts explores the unique landscapes and environments in which this sport can be played. From lush greens to rugged deserts, these digitally created scenes push the boundaries of what we traditionally associate with a tennis court. Trail 1: In the… Read more: Tennis Trails and Tennis Fashion Icons, Art by Apeksha - Flying: Coco Gauff’s Backhand and Bessie Smith’s Voice, Art by Faith Ringgold*
Coco’s Backhand, her money shot. Bessie Smith’s voice. When you heard that voice, as they said of Armstrong’s trumpet, “you put your money down.” Coco flying to her first grand slam title at the US Open in NYC where people on subways see Ringgold’s heroes and heroines– performers, painters, athletes, activists, writers—all “Flying Home” to… Read more: Flying: Coco Gauff’s Backhand and Bessie Smith’s Voice, Art by Faith Ringgold* - Kaffir Boy, by Mark Mathabane (The Best Tennis Story I Know)
Check out my latest book, Tennis Players as Works of Art, now available on Amazon. Called “madly ambitious” and named one its 5 featured books of 2024 in the category of Art/Imagination/Creativity by Publisher’s Weekly Booklife, Tennis Players as Works of Art has also been named “One of the Best Books we Read in 2024”… Read more: Kaffir Boy, by Mark Mathabane (The Best Tennis Story I Know) - Melting Watches: Djokovic and Dali
Check out my latest book, Tennis Players as Works of Art, now available on Amazon. Called “madly ambitious” and named one its 5 featured books of 2024 in the category of Art/Imagination/Creativity by Publisher’s Weekly Booklife, Tennis Players as Works of Art has also been named “One of the Best Books we Read in 2024”… Read more: Melting Watches: Djokovic and Dali - Life and Death in Austin, Texas
Listened to the new Ash Barty biography while driving eight hours to Austin. She hated traveling to tournaments. That’s why she quit tennis as a top junior prospect. That’s why she quit the second time when she was just 25 and the #1 player in the world. Only one in a million would do that.… Read more: Life and Death in Austin, Texas - Esther Vergeer’s Body, Art by Marielle Durand
This is an excerpt from my latest book, Tennis Players as Works of Art, now available on Amazon. Called “madly ambitious” and named one its 5 featured books of 2024 in the category of Art/Imagination/Creativity by Publisher’s Weekly Booklife, Tennis Players as Works of Art has also been named “One of the Best Books we… Read more: Esther Vergeer’s Body, Art by Marielle Durand - Arkansas (Southerns) Wins Nationals
Check out my latest book, Tennis Players as Works of Art, now available on Amazon. Called “madly ambitious” and named one its 5 featured books of 2024 in the category of Art/Imagination/Creativity by Publisher’s Weekly Booklife, Tennis Players as Works of Art has also been named “One of the Best Books we Read in 2024”… Read more: Arkansas (Southerns) Wins Nationals - Daniil Medvedev: A Gemlike Flame, Photography by Ray Giubilo
This work an excerpt from my latest book, Tennis Players as Works of Art, now available on Amazon. Called “madly ambitious” and named one its 5 featured books of 2024 in the category of Art/Imagination/Creativity by Publisher’s Weekly Booklife, Tennis Players as Works of Art has also been named “One of the Best Books we… Read more: Daniil Medvedev: A Gemlike Flame, Photography by Ray Giubilo - Jelena Ostapenko: How to Penko, How to Parent
My philosophy of parenting is not unlike Ostapenko’s game. Try for too much. Fail often in hopes of greater success. Read philosophy, poetry to the baby in the womb. Always talk over their head. “A man’s reach must exceed his grasp, or what’s a heaven for?”* One of the worst ways to play tennis is… Read more: Jelena Ostapenko: How to Penko, How to Parent - Rafael Nadal and the Lascaux Cave Paintings
4,500 rpm on the forehand. Borg’s topspin revolution doubled, squared. All that topspin means net clearance, safety, angles. The perfect weapon for clay, its wars of attrition. Not far from the arena of Roland Garros lay the caves of Lascaux. In the womb of their history lay hundreds of familiar, mysterious beasts. Rafa’s afraid of… Read more: Rafael Nadal and the Lascaux Cave Paintings - Jana Novotna and Kafka’s “Metamorphosis”
Leading 4-1, 40-30 in the final set for the Wimbledon title, Novotna’s second serve sails halfway to the baseline. Double fault. Deuce. Tension. Novotna pokes a sitter forehand volley way over the baseline. Ad-out. Jana’s legs imperceptibly heavier move back on a lob, her shoulder metamorphosing tightening up slowing down as it strikes the ball… Read more: Jana Novotna and Kafka’s “Metamorphosis” - Gladys Heldman, Art by Jeffrey Sparr
This is an excerpt from my latest book, Tennis Players as Works of Art, now available on Amazon. Called “madly ambitious” and named one its 5 featured books of 2024 in the category of Art/Imagination/Creativity by Publisher’s Weekly Booklife, Tennis Players as Works of Art has also been named “One of the Best Books… Read more: Gladys Heldman, Art by Jeffrey Sparr - Peter Doohan, The Becker Wrecker
Check out my latest book, Tennis Players as Works of Art, now available on Amazon. Called “madly ambitious” and named one its 5 featured books of 2024 in the category of Art/Imagination/Creativity by Publisher’s Weekly Booklife, Tennis Players as Works of Art has also been named “One of the Best Books we Read in 2024”… Read more: Peter Doohan, The Becker Wrecker - Two Studies of Tennis Players: The Men’s 65 National Indoors, and the Art of Bogdan Shiptenko
This is an excerpt from my latest book, Tennis Players as Works of Art, now available on Amazon. Called “madly ambitious” and named one its 5 featured books of 2024 in the category of Art/Imagination/Creativity by Publisher’s Weekly Booklife, Tennis Players as Works of Art has also been named “One of the Best Books we… Read more: Two Studies of Tennis Players: The Men’s 65 National Indoors, and the Art of Bogdan Shiptenko - The Stan Smith Adidas: “Some People Think I’m a Shoe.”
Check out my latest book, Tennis Players as Works of Art, now available on Amazon. Called “madly ambitious” and named one its 5 featured books of 2024 in the category of Art/Imagination/Creativity by Publisher’s Weekly Booklife, Tennis Players as Works of Art has also been named “One of the Best Books we Read in 2024”… Read more: The Stan Smith Adidas: “Some People Think I’m a Shoe.” - “Play,” Art by MaRICHka Shkuro
Check out my latest book, Tennis Players as Works of Art, now available on Amazon. Called “madly ambitious” and named one its 5 featured books of 2024 in the category of Art/Imagination/Creativity by Publisher’s Weekly Booklife, Tennis Players as Works of Art has also been named “One of the Best Books we Read in 2024”… Read more: “Play,” Art by MaRICHka Shkuro - Sara Errani: Two Dinners, Art by Achille Chiarello
This is an excerpt my latest book, Tennis Players as Works of Art, now available on Amazon. Called “madly ambitious” and named one its 5 featured books of 2024 in the category of Art/Imagination/Creativity by Publisher’s Weekly Booklife, Tennis Players as Works of Art has also been named “One of the Best Books we Read… Read more: Sara Errani: Two Dinners, Art by Achille Chiarello - Tennis in Cuba and Croatia, Art by Andrew Macara
This is an excerpt my latest book, Tennis Players as Works of Art, now available on Amazon. Called “madly ambitious” and named one its 5 featured books of 2024 in the category of Art/Imagination/Creativity by Publisher’s Weekly Booklife, Tennis Players as Works of Art has also been named “One of the Best Books we Read… Read more: Tennis in Cuba and Croatia, Art by Andrew Macara - David Yarrow’s Beasts: Sharks, Bears, and Casper Ruud
This is an excerpt from my latest book, Tennis Players as Works of Art, now available on Amazon. Called “madly ambitious” and named one its 5 featured books of 2024 in the category of Art/Imagination/Creativity by Publisher’s Weekly Booklife, Tennis Players as Works of Art has also been named “One of the Best Books we… Read more: David Yarrow’s Beasts: Sharks, Bears, and Casper Ruud - Virginia Wade: 1977 Wimbledon, Art by Rosemary Taylor
Check out my latest book, Tennis Players as Works of Art, now available on Amazon. Called “madly ambitious” and named one its 5 featured books of 2024 in the category of Art/Imagination/Creativity by Publisher’s Weekly Booklife, Tennis Players as Works of Art has also been named “One of the Best Books we Read in 2024”… Read more: Virginia Wade: 1977 Wimbledon, Art by Rosemary Taylor - Artist and Muse: Ted Tinling and Gussie Moran
Check out my latest book, Tennis Players as Works of Art, now available on Amazon. Called “madly ambitious” and named one its 5 featured books of 2024 in the category of Art/Imagination/Creativity by Publisher’s Weekly Booklife, Tennis Players as Works of Art has also been named “One of the Best Books we Read in 2024”… Read more: Artist and Muse: Ted Tinling and Gussie Moran - Thomas Muster, Art by Tom Lohner
Check out my latest book, Tennis Players as Works of Art, now available on Amazon. Called “madly ambitious” and named one its 5 featured books of 2024 in the category of Art/Imagination/Creativity by Publisher’s Weekly Booklife, Tennis Players as Works of Art has also been named “One of the Best Books we Read in 2024”… Read more: Thomas Muster, Art by Tom Lohner - “Tennis Muse,” Art by Sara Lora
“The ‘Tennis Muse’ painting depicts the Imperial Age statue of the Torlonia Nymph with a sport-inspired detail—a hat atop her head. The juxtaposition of the classical statue with the sporty accessory creates an intriguing blend of ancient and contemporary themes, capturing the essence of dedicated athletes immersed in their mental preparation before a competition.”—Sara Lora… Read more: “Tennis Muse,” Art by Sara Lora - Zverev’s Mind, or Zverev’s Second Serve
Check out my latest book, Tennis Players as Works of Art, now available on Amazon. Called “madly ambitious” and named one its 5 featured books of 2024 in the category of Art/Imagination/Creativity by Publisher’s Weekly Booklife, Tennis Players as Works of Art has also been named “One of the Best Books we Read in 2024”… Read more: Zverev’s Mind, or Zverev’s Second Serve - R. Norris Williams: US National Champ and Titanic Survivor
Check out my latest book, Tennis Players as Works of Art, now available on Amazon. Called “madly ambitious” and named one its 5 featured books of 2024 in the category of Art/Imagination/Creativity by Publisher’s Weekly Booklife, Tennis Players as Works of Art has also been named “One of the Best Books we Read in 2024”… Read more: R. Norris Williams: US National Champ and Titanic Survivor - The Norman Brookes Challenge Cup
Check out my latest book, Tennis Players as Works of Art, now available on Amazon. Called “madly ambitious” and named one its 5 featured books of 2024 in the category of Art/Imagination/Creativity by Publisher’s Weekly Booklife, Tennis Players as Works of Art has also been named “One of the Best Books we Read in 2024”… Read more: The Norman Brookes Challenge Cup - Sloane Stephens’ Wings, 2021
Check out my latest book, Tennis Players as Works of Art, now available on Amazon. Called “madly ambitious” and named one its 5 featured books of 2024 in the category of Art/Imagination/Creativity by Publisher’s Weekly Booklife, Tennis Players as Works of Art has also been named “One of the Best Books we Read in 2024”… Read more: Sloane Stephens’ Wings, 2021 - Yulia Putintseva’s Instagram: The Glam Side of the WTA Tour
Check out my latest book, Tennis Players as Works of Art, now available on Amazon. Called “madly ambitious” and named one its 5 featured books of 2024 in the category of Art/Imagination/Creativity by Publisher’s Weekly Booklife, Tennis Players as Works of Art has also been named “One of the Best Books we Read in 2024”… Read more: Yulia Putintseva’s Instagram: The Glam Side of the WTA Tour - Tony Wilding’s Motorbike
Check out my latest book, Tennis Players as Works of Art, now available on Amazon. Called “madly ambitious” and named one its 5 featured books of 2024 in the category of Art/Imagination/Creativity by Publisher’s Weekly Booklife, Tennis Players as Works of Art has also been named “One of the Best Books we Read in 2024”… Read more: Tony Wilding’s Motorbike - Karen Khachanov, Russian/Armenian
Check out my latest book, Tennis Players as Works of Art, now available on Amazon. Called “madly ambitious” and named one its 5 featured books of 2024 in the category of Art/Imagination/Creativity by Publisher’s Weekly Booklife, Tennis Players as Works of Art has also been named “One of the Best Books we Read in 2024”… Read more: Karen Khachanov, Russian/Armenian - Through Agassi’s Eyes: Marcos Baghdatis at the US Open
Check out my latest book, Tennis Players as Works of Art, now available on Amazon. Called “madly ambitious” and named one its 5 featured books of 2024 in the category of Art/Imagination/Creativity by Publisher’s Weekly Booklife, Tennis Players as Works of Art has also been named “One of the Best Books we Read in 2024”… Read more: Through Agassi’s Eyes: Marcos Baghdatis at the US Open - Kimiko Date’s Forehands and Kusuma’s Polka Dots
Check out my latest book, Tennis Players as Works of Art, now available on Amazon. Called “madly ambitious” and named one its 5 featured books of 2024 in the category of Art/Imagination/Creativity by Publisher’s Weekly Booklife, Tennis Players as Works of Art has also been named “One of the Best Books we Read in 2024”… Read more: Kimiko Date’s Forehands and Kusuma’s Polka Dots - Kay Stammers, Alice Marble, and JFK
Check out my latest book, Tennis Players as Works of Art, now available on Amazon. Called “madly ambitious” and named one its 5 featured books of 2024 in the category of Art/Imagination/Creativity by Publisher’s Weekly Booklife, Tennis Players as Works of Art has also been named “One of the Best Books we Read in 2024”… Read more: Kay Stammers, Alice Marble, and JFK - Hurricane Helen Kelesi
Check out my latest book, Tennis Players as Works of Art, now available on Amazon. Called “madly ambitious” and named one its 5 featured books of 2024 in the category of Art/Imagination/Creativity by Publisher’s Weekly Booklife, Tennis Players as Works of Art has also been named “One of the Best Books we Read in 2024”… Read more: Hurricane Helen Kelesi - Gigi Fernandez and Natasha Zvereva: 1 + 1 = 14
This is an excerpt from my latest book, Tennis Players as Works of Art, now available on Amazon. Called “madly ambitious” and named one its 5 featured books of 2024 in the category of Art/Imagination/Creativity by Publisher’s Weekly Booklife, Tennis Players as Works of Art has also been named “One of the Best Books we… Read more: Gigi Fernandez and Natasha Zvereva: 1 + 1 = 14 - Larry Turville’s Slice Backhand
Check out my latest book, Tennis Players as Works of Art, now available on Amazon. Called “madly ambitious” and named one its 5 featured books of 2024 in the category of Art/Imagination/Creativity by Publisher’s Weekly Booklife, Tennis Players as Works of Art has also been named “One of the Best Books we Read in 2024”… Read more: Larry Turville’s Slice Backhand - Peng Shuai, China
Check out my latest book, Tennis Players as Works of Art, now available on Amazon. Called “madly ambitious” and named one its 5 featured books of 2024 in the category of Art/Imagination/Creativity by Publisher’s Weekly Booklife, Tennis Players as Works of Art has also been named “One of the Best Books we Read in 2024”… Read more: Peng Shuai, China - Ion Tiriac, Tennis Billionaire
Check out my latest book, Tennis Players as Works of Art, now available on Amazon. Called “madly ambitious” and named one its 5 featured books of 2024 in the category of Art/Imagination/Creativity by Publisher’s Weekly Booklife, Tennis Players as Works of Art has also been named “One of the Best Books we Read in 2024”… Read more: Ion Tiriac, Tennis Billionaire - The Carlos Alcaraz Experience
Thought Experiment: In Raymond Carver’s short story “Cathedral,” the narrator tries to describe a Gothic Cathedral to a blind man. Inspired by Carver’s story, I try to describe the tennis game of Carlos Alcaraz to a blind man. The US Open was on television. The commentators went on and on: “Oh, Stop it,” “Oh, No… Read more: The Carlos Alcaraz Experience - Elena Rybakina on Winning Wimbledon: “It’s a Fairy Tale”
Check out my latest book, Tennis Players as Works of Art, now available on Amazon. Called “madly ambitious” and named one its 5 featured books of 2024 in the category of Art/Imagination/Creativity by Publisher’s Weekly Booklife, Tennis Players as Works of Art has also been named “One of the Best Books we Read in 2024”… Read more: Elena Rybakina on Winning Wimbledon: “It’s a Fairy Tale” - Denmark’s Holger Rune and Holger Danske
Check out my latest book, Tennis Players as Works of Art, now available on Amazon. Called “madly ambitious” and named one its 5 featured books of 2024 in the category of Art/Imagination/Creativity by Publisher’s Weekly Booklife, Tennis Players as Works of Art has also been named “One of the Best Books we Read in 2024”… Read more: Denmark’s Holger Rune and Holger Danske - I Compare my Father to Ilie Nastase
Check out my latest book, Tennis Players as Works of Art, now available on Amazon. Called “madly ambitious” and named one its 5 featured books of 2024 in the category of Art/Imagination/Creativity by Publisher’s Weekly Booklife, Tennis Players as Works of Art has also been named “One of the Best Books we Read in 2024”… Read more: I Compare my Father to Ilie Nastase - Martina Trevisan, Hunger Artist
Check out my latest book, Tennis Players as Works of Art, now available on Amazon. Called “madly ambitious” and named one its 5 featured books of 2024 in the category of Art/Imagination/Creativity by Publisher’s Weekly Booklife, Tennis Players as Works of Art has also been named “One of the Best Books we Read in 2024”… Read more: Martina Trevisan, Hunger Artist - Andrey Rublev’s Forehand and The Virgin of Vladimir
Check out my latest book, Tennis Players as Works of Art, now available on Amazon. Called “madly ambitious” and named one its 5 featured books of 2024 in the category of Art/Imagination/Creativity by Publisher’s Weekly Booklife, Tennis Players as Works of Art has also been named “One of the Best Books we Read in 2024”… Read more: Andrey Rublev’s Forehand and The Virgin of Vladimir - Bill Tilden and Dante
Check out my latest book, Tennis Players as Works of Art, now available on Amazon. Called “madly ambitious” and named one its 5 featured books of 2024 in the category of Art/Imagination/Creativity by Publisher’s Weekly Booklife, Tennis Players as Works of Art has also been named “One of the Best Books we Read in 2024”… Read more: Bill Tilden and Dante - Mary Pierce: A Post-Conversion Story
Check out my latest book, Tennis Players as Works of Art, now available on Amazon. Called “madly ambitious” and named one its 5 featured books of 2024 in the category of Art/Imagination/Creativity by Publisher’s Weekly Booklife, Tennis Players as Works of Art has also been named “One of the Best Books we Read in 2024”… Read more: Mary Pierce: A Post-Conversion Story - No Man’s Land
Check out my latest book, Tennis Players as Works of Art, now available on Amazon. Called “madly ambitious” and named one its 5 featured books of 2024 in the category of Art/Imagination/Creativity by Publisher’s Weekly Booklife, Tennis Players as Works of Art has also been named “One of the Best Books we Read in 2024”… Read more: No Man’s Land - Aryna Sabalenka Dreams of Tigers
“I was always dreaming about tattoos and I was dreaming about tigers. It happened for one week, two weeks, three weeks and then one day I woke up and said, “Okay, I’m going to do this. I’m going to get this tiger tattoo.”—Aryna Sabalenka January, 2022: A tiger blocks Sabalenka’s path. Fear, then more fear.… Read more: Aryna Sabalenka Dreams of Tigers - John McEnroe: Go Bleep Yourself
Check out my latest book, Tennis Players as Works of Art, now available on Amazon. Called “madly ambitious” and named one its 5 featured books of 2024 in the category of Art/Imagination/Creativity by Publisher’s Weekly Booklife, Tennis Players as Works of Art has also been named “One of the Best Books we Read in 2024”… Read more: John McEnroe: Go Bleep Yourself - Michael Mmoh, Lucky Loser
Check out my latest book, Tennis Players as Works of Art, now available on Amazon. Called “madly ambitious” and named one its 5 featured books of 2024 in the category of Art/Imagination/Creativity by Publisher’s Weekly Booklife, Tennis Players as Works of Art has also been named “One of the Best Books we Read in 2024”… Read more: Michael Mmoh, Lucky Loser - Watching Don Budge: Adolf Hitler and Pablo Casals
Check out my latest book, Tennis Players as Works of Art, now available on Amazon. Called “madly ambitious” and named one its 5 featured books of 2024 in the category of Art/Imagination/Creativity by Publisher’s Weekly Booklife, Tennis Players as Works of Art has also been named “One of the Best Books we Read in 2024”… Read more: Watching Don Budge: Adolf Hitler and Pablo Casals - Daniil Medvedev, The Octopus
Check out my latest book, Tennis Players as Works of Art, now available on Amazon. Called “madly ambitious” and named one its 5 featured books of 2024 in the category of Art/Imagination/Creativity by Publisher’s Weekly Booklife, Tennis Players as Works of Art has also been named “One of the Best Books we Read in 2024”… Read more: Daniil Medvedev, The Octopus - John Newcombe and George Bush
Check out my latest book, Tennis Players as Works of Art, now available on Amazon. Called “madly ambitious” and named one its 5 featured books of 2024 in the category of Art/Imagination/Creativity by Publisher’s Weekly Booklife, Tennis Players as Works of Art has also been named “One of the Best Books we Read in 2024”… Read more: John Newcombe and George Bush - Hazel Hotchkiss Wightman: Five Beginnings
Check out my latest book, Tennis Players as Works of Art, now available on Amazon. Called “madly ambitious” and named one its 5 featured books of 2024 in the category of Art/Imagination/Creativity by Publisher’s Weekly Booklife, Tennis Players as Works of Art has also been named “One of the Best Books we Read in 2024”… Read more: Hazel Hotchkiss Wightman: Five Beginnings - “Getting There”: Arkansas Takes Third at Nationals
Check out my latest book, Tennis Players as Works of Art, now available on Amazon. Called “madly ambitious” and named one its 5 featured books of 2024 in the category of Art/Imagination/Creativity by Publisher’s Weekly Booklife, Tennis Players as Works of Art has also been named “One of the Best Books we Read in 2024”… Read more: “Getting There”: Arkansas Takes Third at Nationals - James Wright and Joe Rasgado in Wheeling, West Virginia
Check out my latest book, Tennis Players as Works of Art, now available on Amazon. Called “madly ambitious” and named one its 5 featured books of 2024 in the category of Art/Imagination/Creativity by Publisher’s Weekly Booklife, Tennis Players as Works of Art has also been named “One of the Best Books we Read in 2024”… Read more: James Wright and Joe Rasgado in Wheeling, West Virginia - Embrace Your Community: Arkansas Razorbacks Men’s Tennis
Received this email from former Razorbacks Tennis Coach, Robert Cox, on November 28, 2022: “Please reply if you are coming to hit with the Hogs tomorrow, Tuesday night!! 6-8pm…..Coach Jay Udwadia welcomes you to come meet and hit with the Hogs at the indoor courts..” I showed up, of course, with more than 40 other adult… Read more: Embrace Your Community: Arkansas Razorbacks Men’s Tennis - A Bar in Vancouver, Guest Appearance by Daniel Nestor
2022. I’m in a bar in Vancouver with Jack. Jack married Emily a year ago. Emily’s lucky. Jack’s chill, works at Space X, and loves the outdoors. Jack’s luckier: Emily’s my daughter. Jack’s studying for his final flight for his pilot’s license. Since I lost my wife, Jacque, a year ago, I, too, dream of… Read more: A Bar in Vancouver, Guest Appearance by Daniel Nestor - The Tennis Art of Jeffrey Sparr
If you want a wide range of compelling art about tennis, Jeffrey Sparr is an artist you need to know. As a four year starter on Ohio State’s tennis team, Jeff turned to art as therapy in response to mental health challenges. He then Co-founded PeaceLove Foundation, an organization that equips human service workers with… Read more: The Tennis Art of Jeffrey Sparr - Bethanie Mattek-Sands, Art by Bruce Quiroz
Check out my latest book, Tennis Players as Works of Art, now available on Amazon. Called “madly ambitious” and named one its 5 featured books of 2024 in the category of Art/Imagination/Creativity by Publisher’s Weekly Booklife, Tennis Players as Works of Art has also been named “One of the Best Books we Read in 2024”… Read more: Bethanie Mattek-Sands, Art by Bruce Quiroz - Scattering Jacque’s Ashes at Corrallina Cove
The day after Christmas, my two daughters and I scattered Jacque’s ashes on the small beach in the picture above. Then we watched the waves come in and carry them out to sea. I told Anne and Emily to scatter my ashes here in the very same way. Below is the eulogy I read at… Read more: Scattering Jacque’s Ashes at Corrallina Cove - The Bryan Brothers, Art by Jace McTier
Check out my latest book, Tennis Players as Works of Art, now available on Amazon. Called “madly ambitious” and named one its 5 featured books of 2024 in the category of Art/Imagination/Creativity by Publisher’s Weekly Booklife, Tennis Players as Works of Art has also been named “One of the Best Books we Read in 2024”… Read more: The Bryan Brothers, Art by Jace McTier - A Tennis Racquet from Vietnam
For two summers in the late 1970s, I played tennis every week with a much older player named Van Nguyen–a refugee from Vietnam who played with his shirt off and had the exact same body as the man in the picture above. He was a devilishly good tennis player who never missed and moved the… Read more: A Tennis Racquet from Vietnam - Suzanne: The Jazz Age Goddess of Tennis, by Tom Humberstone
Check out my latest book, Tennis Players as Works of Art, now available on Amazon. Called “madly ambitious” and named one its 5 featured books of 2024 in the category of Art/Imagination/Creativity by Publisher’s Weekly Booklife, Tennis Players as Works of Art has also been named “One of the Best Books we Read in 2024”… Read more: Suzanne: The Jazz Age Goddess of Tennis, by Tom Humberstone - Sport or Art: The Big 3 as Terracotta Warriors, Sculpture by Laury Dizengremel
What’s the most impressive thing about the Egyptian Pyramids, the Terracotta Warriors? More widely known today than in their infancy, they have endured over 4 millennia. The pyramids and the contents within—the pharoah’s chair, his portrait hewed out of hardest stone, are built to last not only as monuments to the dead but as memorial… Read more: Sport or Art: The Big 3 as Terracotta Warriors, Sculpture by Laury Dizengremel - Arkansas Wins Southerns: Waffle House, Redemption, and a Shot of Bailey’s
Check out my latest book, Tennis Players as Works of Art, now available on Amazon. Called “madly ambitious” and named one its 5 featured books of 2024 in the category of Art/Imagination/Creativity by Publisher’s Weekly Booklife, Tennis Players as Works of Art has also been named “One of the Best Books we Read in 2024”… Read more: Arkansas Wins Southerns: Waffle House, Redemption, and a Shot of Bailey’s - Esther Vergeer: Fierce and Vulnerable
Check out my latest book, Tennis Players as Works of Art, now available on Amazon. Called “madly ambitious” and named one its 5 featured books of 2024 in the category of Art/Imagination/Creativity by Publisher’s Weekly Booklife, Tennis Players as Works of Art has also been named “One of the Best Books we Read in 2024”… Read more: Esther Vergeer: Fierce and Vulnerable - “Towards an Indian Gay Image, Oberoi Hotel, 2020,” Art by Sunil Gupta
Note: When I played high school tennis in the 1970s, I heard many say tennis was a “sissy” sport. Not sure I even knew what that meant: effeminate, gay . . . (not sure I even knew what “gay” meant at 15 years old). Those days are gone. Intriguing, though, that Gupta’s gay figure carries a […]View post to subscribe to site newsletter.
- J.J. Wolf Goes Lefty, Hits the Shot of the Year
“God gave me two hands. I might as well use them both.” –Randy Sontheimer In the finals of the Colorado State Open, I hit a sharply angled crosscourt backhand. No way my opponent, Randy Sontheimer, could reach the shot. Suddenly he went lefty on me and punched a topspin forehand down the line for a […]View post to subscribe to site newsletter.
- Three French (S)heroes: Yannick Noah/Amelie Mauresmo/Suzanne Lenglen
Check out my latest book, Tennis Players as Works of Art, now available on Amazon. Called “madly ambitious” and named one its 5 featured books of 2024 in the category of Art/Imagination/Creativity by Publisher’s Weekly Booklife, Tennis Players as Works of Art has also been named “One of the Best Books we Read in 2024”… Read more: Three French (S)heroes: Yannick Noah/Amelie Mauresmo/Suzanne Lenglen - Autumn at the Stagg Invitational
Check out my latest book, Tennis Players as Works of Art, now available on Amazon. Called “madly ambitious” and named one its 5 featured books of 2024 in the category of Art/Imagination/Creativity by Publisher’s Weekly Booklife, Tennis Players as Works of Art has also been named “One of the Best Books we Read in 2024”… Read more: Autumn at the Stagg Invitational